^ I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.
Europeans aren’t any more geographically learned than Americans. They know California and NYC. But say “Oregon” or "Missouri " and you get a blank stare.
^ As if Americans would recognize Hesse as a state in Germany or Occitanie as anything other than a misspelling of the name of a bath and body goods store? :))
My experience (and yours may be different) is that the average European knows much more about the politics and geography of other countries than do most Americans.
@Sue22 My son lived and worked in Paris for three years. He noticed a lot of young people wearing UCLA logoed clothing. He asked a couple if they were American. They were French and had no idea what UCLA stood for. It was just a popular thing to wear at the time.
I wouldn’t expect them to know the acronym for an American university. Beyond the Sorbonne, what French universities would most Americans know?
As an aside, there was a weird period when t-shirts and sweatshirts with nonsensical “American” sayings were all the rage abroad. Things like “High School Go-go Happy!” or “Gymnastics Right Mama!” Those seem to be confined to parts of Asia these days.
Most people know little about political subdivisions of other countries. How many Americans can name any Canadian provinces or Mexican states? Or the political subdivisions of countries in Europe?
Does Queen Elizabeth II count as one or sixteen? 
Heads of state is harder than heads of government, since many countries separate the roles, and the ceremonial head of state tends to get less press in daily news.
Would they remember early US history and recognize it as the place where “Hessian mercenaries” came from (even if they do not know that it is now part of Germany)?
At this point I’d be happy if US citizens knew the 50 states!
Maybe we should make it a requirement for getting their driver’s licenses.
Good point, and slap my hand!.
When I was in high school we had to pass a world geography test in which we had to be able to fill in the names of countries on a blank map with only country borders and cities, mountains, and rivers on a map with no borders at all. Many kids had to take it more than once to get the required 95% but we all studied like crazy and much of it has stayed with me. Of course being able to identify Yugoslavia by shape or spell “Rhodesia” is not as useful as it once was.
“Maybe we should make it a requirement for getting their driver’s licenses.”
No, it should be required for the employees giving OUT the driver’s licenses.
My current students (6th/7th) can’t find the US on a world map!
(I had to discuss the rotation of the earth for the seasons/weather)
I recently bought a game we played as kids: The Game of the States. I found it at a speciality kids store.
My students needed help with pronunciation of the states (Arkansas & Illinois-no final S sound/ Kansas-final s sound produced).
They played it and they liked it, and keep requesting it!
“Why does the Mississippi river spill out into other states?”
“Why did they squeeze all those tiny states together on the East? We have room in the west.”
I am hopeful.
The pull down maps, that we had in our classrooms as kids, are not required in our classrooms (and are expensive).
Remember the Auto Club maps that most people had in their homes? That’s how we learned in my house-a used map from my Uncle.
We had a globe in our house when the kids were young, that sat on a bookshelf in the dining room. Numerous dinner conversations led to someone saying "let’s get the globe down and check!’ We also had various puzzles, games, books, maps, etc. It just seemed to me that having basic knowledge of geography (and other content) is still important. But we have this idea that with google available, no one needs to “know” anything. I think that’s really problematic.
lolol!! typo … wish I can correct.
The board games Postcards from America and Scrambled States of America both make good holiday presents for families with elementary school kids.
Nice holiday gift.
https://www.amazon.com/Learning-Journey-Lift-Learn-Puzzle/dp/B00CI8FIRW
My daughter, only 18, had US geography in elementary school and world geography in middle school. She can still sing the songs. Is that not a universal thing anymore?
This is a fun site to use for geography. You can test yourself on things like flags, countries, cities, and landmarks. It also has various levels so you can use it to learn geography or to test yourself with increasing challenge.
I should have posted a link to “Fifty Nifty United States” in my previous post. Once you learn it, you will never forget it.
@“aunt bea” Maybe you could talk your elementary music teachers into teaching it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhDrGnjacvA
Regarding paper maps, I still keep a spiral-bound road atlas in the back of my car in case my navigation ever quits working. Now that I think about it, I need to order one for each of my kids for their cars!
I remember when my kids had to singing “The Fifty States that Rhyme.” I must admit that song drove me nuts.
I have a tendency to mix up Tennessee and Kentucky on the map. If I didn’t live in New England I think I’d probably find Vermont and New Hampshire problematic.